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Accidents · NTSB SEA87LA159 · Preliminary: the investigation is not finished

Eagle Aircraft Co. DW-1 accident near Hamer, Idaho, August 7, 1987

On August 7, 1987 at about 3:30 pm local time, a Eagle Aircraft Co. DW-1, registered N8803R, was substantially damaged in an accident near Hamer, Idaho (Hamer Strip airport). It was an aerial application (crop spraying) flight under agricultural flying rules (Part 137). No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved. The weather was visual conditions (good weather).

The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged

The NTSB has not yet published a probable cause for this accident. Investigations usually take one to two years; this page updates when the final report is released.

Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.

What the record shows

Date
August 7, 1987 · about 3:30 pm local time
Place
Hamer, Idaho · Hamer Strip · map
Type
Accident
Injuries
No one was hurt; 1 person was on board or involved.
Weather
visual conditions (good weather)
Aircraft
Eagle Aircraft Co. DW-1
Registration
N8803R · registry record · serial BW-1-0024-81
Damage
Substantial damage
Flight
Aerial application (crop spraying) flight · agricultural flying rules (Part 137)

The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record

THE PLT RPRTD THAT HE BGN TAKING OFF ON A DOWNHILL STRIP (APRX 1/2 MI LONG) WITH A LEFT QUARTERING TAIL WIND. AS THE TAKEOFF ROLL PROGRESSED, HE REALIZED AN OVERRUN WAS DEVELOPING, SO HE BGN DUMPING HIS LOAD & ATTEMPTED TO LIFT- OFF. HE SAID THE ACFT SETTLED INTO TALL WEEDS AT THE DEPARTURE END OF THE RWY & NOSED OVER. AFTER THE ACDNT, THE PLT NOTED THAT THE WIND HAD INCREASED IN VELOCITY. THE DENSITY ALT WAS ABOUT 6500'.

The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.

The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English

Pilot

  • Certificate: flight instructor, commercial pilot
  • Ratings: multi-engine land; single-engine land; instructor: airplane single-engine; instrument: airplane
  • Flight time: 8,300 hours in all; 2,500 in this make and model; 260 in the last 90 days; 7,400 as pilot in command
  • Medical certificate: Class 2 (valid medical--w/ waivers/lim.)
  • Seat: ctr

The aircraft

  • Airframe total time: 1,657 hours
  • Last inspection: annual inspection, August 1, 1986
  • Maximum gross weight: 5,400 lb
  • Seats: 1
  • Landing gear: fixed
  • Engine: Lycoming IO-540-M1B5D (piston); 0 hours total

The flight

  • Flight plan: none
  • Runway 18, 2,640 ft

Weather at the time

  • Light: daylight
  • Wind: from 060° at 5 knots
  • Visibility: 20 statute miles
  • Sky: clear
  • Temperature: 64°F (18°C), dew point 43°F (6°C)

Injuries

FatalSeriousMinorNone
Crew1

Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report

The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.

Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.